"Incredible," said a nearby woman. "Imagine not having to wait a decade just to access the tower."

"No kidding," said her companion. "It's been almost eleven years and I still haven't managed to see as many gains as I had back then."

Similar conversations were taking place all throughout the area, though these were quickly quelled by Elder Tegan.

"Even though they're taking place as participants, my disciples will also keep a look out for you guests once you're inside. Our ancestor cast an ancient arrayment upon the materials that he used to build the tower, which makes it impossible for one’s senses to see through them. These climbs usually last a week or two, and there's been a history of poor behavior, so we thought that we would change things up a bit this time around." Elder Tegan signalled for somebody to approach him, and another old man appeared at his side. "This is Elder Jameson. He will be explaining how the tower climb works for those of you who've never taken part."

Elder Jameson, a wiry old man that scarcely filled out what seemed to be the smallest size of the sect's uniform for elders, stood beside Elder Tegan and addressed the onlookers.

"For those that aren’t familiar with the Desolate Spirit Tower, it's important for you to remember that the environment of each level is far more challenging than the one before it. This tower was left behind by our ancient ancestor, which is why our sect decided to settle down on the Grand Isle of Weston. Not only did he make it so that not even the most powerful auras can penetrate through the walls, he cast several ancient spiritual arrayments on this tower just before his death. These allow it to gather different types of energies and amplify their presence drastically by relying on some unknown means.

"Each floor of the tower is filled with both Origin Energy and spiritual energy, but there is far more of the latter, so it’s very beneficial to the development of one's spiritual sense. It’s important to keep track of the energy in the air, as the tower itself manifests an aura that corresponds to the amount of energy on a given floor, so you’ll have to face the pressure of this aura every moment that you’re inside."

I've already seen three people in the Genesis stage on this island, and I haven't even seen their sect master yet. Isn't this place pretty incredible? Nolan couldn’t help but hope that one day these people would become enemies with the Bloodhand Sect. If that were to happen, then the entire situation in the easterly kingdoms could change overnight.

Humph, this backwater barnyard, incredible? Have your eyes begun to fail since I've been gone?

U—Uncle Grey?

Nolan was started into stillness, which didn't escape Avril's notice. Nyla also cast a gaze his way, but he simply pretended that nothing had happened.

Who else would it be?

Suddenly it was difficult to pay attention to Elder Jameson’s droning voice. "Just as the energy levels that fill each floor increase the higher that you ascend, so too does the aura. The first floor will be beneficial for everybody, but it's not recommended that those in the Profound Entry stage go any higher than that. There have been many fatalities in this tower, so you must exercise absolute caution."

How long have you been conscious? Are you okay?

I never thought that I would see this day, came an appreciative sigh. My dear disciple has truly been worried. Don't fret, my spirit is fine now. Oho, but why have you barely grown?

Barely grown? Just say it, you're impressed. His spiritual space was much larger than it had been at the time that he’d lost contact with the old ghost. Do you know how many times I almost died while you were asleep? I had no choice but to get stronger.

Back in Malben County, Uncle Grey had tried to assist Nolan in battle but the attempt had backfired, causing the old spirit to suffer a devastating backlash that saw him forced into a sealed state. After that, Nolan had lost his only guide in a world that he was wholly ignorant of, which caused him to run into many roadblocks that he otherwise could have avoided.

Elder Jameson concluded his address and then passed the audience's attention over to Elder Tegan.

"This year's climb is set to last two weeks. Anybody still inside once that time expires will be forcibly removed by our elders." The old man was quiet for a moment as his aged gaze swept across the crowd, his expression neutral. "Before you enter the tower, you will be given a spiritual token, which will us keep track of your location once inside, and also your condition. Be sure to collect it, else we won't be able to help you if nobody is around and you fall into a crisis. Now, without further delay, I'd like to officially announce the beginning of our Falling Rain Sect’s 301st tower climb!” He waved a rigid arm. “Disciples, do show our guests into the tower."

The crowd gradually began to head toward the front entrance. Those at the head of the line were handed tiny tokens of azure jade, which had been carved into little coins.

Old Ghost, you came at a perfect time. What do you think about this place?

Humph, it definitely wasn't left behind by their so-called ancestor, that's for sure. This should have been here for hundreds of millennia already.

That long? Is it preserved by some sort of arrayment, then?

Not just any arrayment, but a Grand Arrayment. And I don't mean what these mice consider a Grand Arrayment, but a real one, from my era.

Do you recognize anything about it?

A few things. These were common back in my day. This should have belonged to a low-ranking Arrayment Master from long ago. Just try to climb as high as you can, it’ll be good for you.

Uncle Grey had once mentioned that there was a classification system for arrayment practitioners that was slightly similar to the one used by martial cultivators, but he'd refused to go into detail about it. From that day onward, he had simply floated away every time that he was asked about it. Nolan figured that he was finally at the entry level of said system, so he would have to ask Uncle Grey about it once he was finished with the event. He had more pressing worries at the moment, however, so that would have to wait.

"Nolan?" asked Avril. "You've been quiet for a while now."

"Hmm? Oh, yeah, I'm just lost in thought." Nyla was also staring at him, so he looked her way and mouthed the name of their master.

Her eyes lit up, irises the brightest form of black. Although she was eager to converse with the old ghost, she seemed to resist the impulse and instead kept on talking with Lyra. She was well aware that such a conversation was one to be had in private. Private…

You better not have been awake last week!

What are you going on about? Were you shamed in front of some crowd? Hah. Some humility would do you well.

Okay, good…

Avril eyed a group of elders that had just arrived on scene, as they began to set up an unknown arrayment just to the side of the tower's main entrance. "What floor do you think you'll make it to?"

"No clue."

"You're not a local, so I'll give you a little warning. They really underplayed how many people die in this place, and it's always some fool thinking that they're suddenly going to overcome their limits by struggling forward through the tower's aura. I'm thinking at least thirty die this year."

"That many?"

"I've heard that they either explode from consuming too much energy, or they are flattened into paste by the aura. Not a pretty sight, I'd imagine."

How could things even progress to that point? Nolan imagined that anybody would immediately turn back the moment they sensed danger.

Although only a few people in their group had potential as arrayment practitioners, they had all paid a thousand spirit stones to be here, so everybody decided to take advantage of this time to cultivate. It wasn't long before they had collected their tokens and walked through the grand double doors, which were heavyset slabs of polished wood. Once inside, Nolan was immediately hit by a wave of dense energies, and looked around to see that about half of the participants were settling down to cultivate on the first floor. Nolan was suddenly self-conscious about his core cultivation method, which he rarely displayed in front of others. The Ancestral Body Technique required him to strike a good deal of strange poses, and involved a lot of movement. Would he end up drawing everyone's attention?

It shouldn’t matter if there aren’t a lot of people around. He glanced at the far end of the massive room, about a hundred metres away, where over a thousand arrayment practitioners were swarming into a wide staircase. If he wanted to lose the crowd, he would have to climb as high as possible.